Fuel and water feeding and steam discharge arrangement for combustion chambers



Nov. 8, 1949 R. H. GODDARD FUEL AND WATER FEEDING AND STEAM DISCHARGE ARRANGEMENT FOR COMBUSTION CHAMBERS Filed Feb. 7,' 1948 lGAl/Tfl? F/LAMENTARY METAL v i'lll'll"" INVENTOR.

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Patented Nov. 8, 1949 I 3,481,435 rum. AND WATER rannmc m STEAM DISCHARGE ARRANGEMENT FOR COM- BUSTION CHAMBERS Robert H. Goddard, deceased, late of Annapolis,

Md., by Esther C. Goddard, executrix, Worcester, Mass, assignor of one-half to The Daniel -and Florence Guggenheim Foundation, New

York, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application February 1, 1948, Serial No. 7,015 v 3 Claims. (01. 60-46) This invention relates to combustion chambers as used in rockets and other propulsion apparatus.

It is an important object of the invention to provide a combustion chamber wall'of improved construction and of increased strength, and one which is well adapted to be effectively cooled by the combustion elements introduced therethrough. 3

A more specific objectis to provide a combustion chamber wall of rigid metallic construction and having impervious inner and outer surface portions and an intermediate porous portion, I

and all preferably of a single metal or alloy.

1 'Another feature of the invention relates to improved means for producing steam in such a combustion chamber and for discharging steam therefrom.

The invention further relates to arrangements and combinations of parts which will be hereinafter set forth and more particularly pointed out inthe appended claims. Y

Preferred forms of the invention are shown in the drawing, in which Fig. l is a sectional side elevation of a combustion chamber embodying this invention;

Fig. 2 is a detail sectional end elevation, taken along the line 2-2 in Fig. '1;

Fig. 3 is a sectionalend elevation on a reduced scale and taken along the line 3-3 in Fig.1;

Figs. 4 and 5 are enlarged sectional side elevations of certain portions of Fig. .1;- and Fig. 6 is a sectional side elevation of a modified construction. I

Referring to Figs. ber C is jshown, having opposed conical walls it and I and provided with a conical discharge nozzle N. Outer walls or casings l2 and pro- 1 to .5, a combustion" chamthrough ports 31. The outer volute has a dis-' charge pipe through which steam may be devide jacket spaces sand 8' to'which combustion A liquids-maybe supplied'under pressure through feed pipes it and I1. Feed openingsor slots and 2i are provided in the adjacent-end portions' of theconical walls Ill and II. One combustion liquid, as gasoline, may

,supplied through the pipe It to the space 3 and will be projected intothe chamber C in the form of fiat. sprays. A second combustion liquid, as liquid oxygen, may be similarly supplied under pressure through the pipe ii to the space s' and will be sprayed through the openings 2i. These sprays intersect and are intimately intermingled as indicated in Fig. 1, andmay be ignited by an axially disposed igniter 23 which maybe of the hot flash or any other convenient type.

An important feature of the-invention relates discharged through the pipe I0.

to the filling of the-jacket spaces 8 and s' with porous metallic materials M and M which are of rigid construction but which also provide contimious filamentary ducts through which the combustion liquids can flow relatively freely.

Preferably the walls It and Ii, casings i2 and I4, and filling materials M and M are all composed of the same metal or alloyand are so united that they form in effect single integral metallic structures.

This unitary construction may be conveniently achieved by filling the spaces 8 and S with compressed and finely divided metal fragments or metal powder and by thereafter sintering or partially softening and melting the metal fragment to cause them-to adhere to each other and to the enclosing metal walls. The metal should have good heat conductivity. A mixture of silver and tungsten may be used to advantage, also a mixture of copper and tungsten The porous filling materials M and M are stopped off to provide clear spaces adjacent the feed pipes i6 and I1 and adjacent the feed opening or slots 20 and 2|. It is sometimes desirable to generate steam by a portion of the heat developed in the combustion chamber 0.

For this purpose,- the adjacent ends of the conical chamber walls ill and II are spaced apart to admit a band 30 having a plurality of small feed openings 3! which communicate with an inner volute 32 (Figs. 1 and ,2) to which water under pressure is fed through a pipe 33.

An outer volute 35 surrounds the inner volute 32 and is provided with a plurality of tubes 38- which connect into-the combustion chamber-C livered, to be used for any other useful purpose.

With this construction, water will-be sprayed into thecombustion chamber through the rela- I tively. small feed openings 3 I from the inner volute 32 and will bequickly changed into steam by the hot combustion gases in the chamber C. This steam, with-some small admixture of combustion gases, then escapes through the ports 31 and tubes 36 to 'the volute 35, and to be thereafter Effective provision is thus made for feeding the combustion liquids under pressure without requiring external power, which is of substantial im-. portance in the operation of rocket apparatus.

A slightly modified construction is shown in Fig. 6, in which the combustion chamber C has approximately semi-spherical end walls 50' and ii said volute, an outer volute having tubular connections through said first volute to steam ports in the wall 01' said combustion chamber, and means to discharge steam from said outer volute.

2. The combination in combustion apparatus as set forth in claim 1, in which the tubular connections are curved in a diametral plane of said chamber to induce rotational circulation of the at substantial angles as in the form previously described. Any usual igniter 85 may be provided for the chamber C.

The integral construction of the chamber walls,

jacket casings and metal filling materials will be as previously described in connection with Fig. l, and the use and advantages of this construction are the same.

It is noted, however, that the substantially spherical shape of the combustion chamber C gives maximum volume for a given weight of chamber wall and casing and also give exceptional strength.

Having thus described the invention and the advantages thereof, it will be understood that the invention is not to be limited to the details herein disclosed, otherwise than as set forth in the claims, but what is claimed is:

1. In combustion apparatus, a combustion chamber having reversed conical end walls, means to spray two different combustion liquids to said chamber at points adjacent the greatest chamber diameter, a volute encircling said chamber at said greatest diameter and having spray opensteam in said outer volute.

3. In combustion apparatus, a combustion chamber having reversed jacketed conical end walls, means to feed two diiierent combustion liquids through said jacketed walls to said chamber at points adjacent the greatest chamber diameter, a volute interposed between said jacketed end walls and encircling said chamber at said greatings into said chamber, means to feed water to est diameter and having spray openings into said chamber, means to feed water to said volute, an outer volute having tubular connections extending through said first volute to steam ports in the wall or said combustion chamber between said water spray openings, and means to discharge steam from said outer volute.

ESTHER C. GODDARD, Ezecutriz: of the Last Will and Testament of Robert H. Goddard, Deceased.

REFERENCES CITED v The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS 

